


down the rabbit hole

by Super_Danvers



Category: Snowpiercer (TV 2020)
Genre: F/F, First Meeting, Sapphic, alex cavill, melanie cavill - Freeform, melaudrey, miss audrey - Freeform, tnt snowpiercer, wlw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-14 08:01:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29167710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Super_Danvers/pseuds/Super_Danvers
Summary: Lying awake in the dark, Melanie recalls how she met Miss Audrey.
Relationships: Miss Audrey/Melanie Cavill
Comments: 6
Kudos: 26





	down the rabbit hole

Melanie Cavill couldn’t quite remember the circumstances that pulled her into The Rabbit coffee shop on a Friday evening. She remembered she’d dropped off Alex at her parents again, despite promising that it was their girls’ weekend where it would be just the two of them and they could do whatever Alex wanted. She remembered Alex hadn’t even cried when she broke the promise. She had just stayed quiet and walked into her grandparents’ home without looking back to say goodbye. Melanie remembered feeling shitty for doing it but knew there was nothing she could do when Wilford had been berating her to keep working all week long. He didn’t pay her to disappoint him, as he frequently reminded her.

She’d been walking along the street, heading back to the office because she’d forgotten something, probably a blueprint or a notebook. It was something that was insignificant to her now but evidently wasn’t at the time. Whenever Melanie looked back at this memory, she always tried to think as to what on Earth could’ve been more important than spending a weekend with her daughter, but there was nothing. It didn’t matter anyway: it was the past.

Melanie recalled that she’d gone into the little sub-street shop on her way back after the snow had started falling. At the time, with the dropping temperatures and blizzards, it was easier to find shelter than try and brave it out. It must’ve been why she’d gone into the place because she wouldn’t have gone into it any other time or for any other reason. The Rabbit was definitely not her scene. Everything was overpriced and everyone who ever went in to buy something were always at least ten years younger than she was. However, with the snow evolving into another full-on storm, she’d had no choice but to go in.

Melanie remembered they’d been closing up. The coffee machines were empty and the chairs were being stacked up onto the tables for the night. When she’d stumbled through the doors, Melanie almost expected to be shouted at and be told to leave because they were closed. However, a face appeared from behind the register and smiled at her.

“Are you getting out of the storm or are you here to rob us?” The face raised up and became a pair of shoulders, quickly followed by a torso with a pair of hands that were wiping at a cloth. “Just so I know whether to lock up the register or start begging for my life.”

When Melanie didn’t say anything, the smile broadened and the face – a woman – chuckled as if she had said something funny.

“Tough crowd. Well, if it’s any compliment, you don’t look like the armed robbery type to me so I think I’m safe.” With her cloth, she gestured to one of the tables that hadn’t had its chairs stacked. “You can sit over there, if you want. Just until the storm stops.”

Melanie took off her scarf and nodded politely. “Thank you.”

“No problem.” The woman replied, throwing the cloth over her shoulder. “Can I get you anything?”

“Aren’t you closed?”

“Yeah but you look like you need something to warm you up and you’ll be here a while.”

Melanie took a seat by the window and removed her coat as well. “Oh. Just a mint tea if you have it.”

“Sure thing.” The woman nodded and started moving around, organising cups and machines. “Name for the order?”

Melanie frowned and looked around the café. Everywhere else was still and silent as a mouse. She looked back at the barista, who still smiled back at her. “There’s nobody else here.”

“Amuse me.”

A long pause. “It’s Melanie.”

The woman produced a green cup and scribbled it onto the side. “Mel-a-nie. There. Nice name.” She popped a tea bag into it. “I’m Audrey, by the way. Tell me, _Melanie_ , what are you doing out this late?”

Melanie’s stomach turned at the way the woman, Audrey, spoke her name. She couldn’t tell if it was a good kind of turn or not, like a twist or something crawling along her arms and bringing her skin out in goosebumps. Either way, she tried to shrug it off and forced a smile.

“Working.”

“Oh yeah? What do you do?”

“Engineer.”

The woman’s eyebrows rose and she poured boiling water from the kettle into the cup. She appeared from around the bar and set the tea in front of Melanie, then took a seat opposite her. “Sounds fancy. What do you engineer? Is that the right term?”

Melanie took a sip of the tea and settled back with it, closing her eyes and letting the hot liquid sooth her tired throat. She only stayed like that a moment because she suddenly remembered Audrey had asked her a question. She opened her eyes and looked at her. Melanie didn’t really know what she was expecting but she wasn’t expecting Audrey to actually look genuinely interested in her job. Nobody ever really knew how to talk about engineering nor seemed very interested in what it was, but Audrey was staring at her with full attention. Melanie sat up a bit.

“I’m designing a train.”

Audrey raised an eyebrow. “A train? Like a transporter?”

“Something like that. You know cruise ships?”

“I know Titanic.”

Melanie cracked an actual smile at that. That was a new answer. “It’s like Titanic, but a train.” She said simply, then added. “And it won’t sink. Hopefully.”

Audrey nodded, understanding. She paused, thinking for another question and for a moment, Melanie almost saw Alex in her. That was ridiculous, because the two weren’t related. It was strange because they seemed to have the same mannerisms. Alex did that when she was going to ask something she knew would make her mother stop and consider it. She’d take this long pause, maybe stick her tongue out as she looked around for inspiration or something that would prompt another question. Audrey bit her lip as she did it, then finally:

“Where’s this train going?”

Melanie sipped her tea again and swallowed hard. She didn’t meet Audrey’s eye, knowing if she did she’d have to spill the truth. The truth that Wilford had orchestrated all these snow storms and was planning on a saviour train to be the leader of the last of humanity. She couldn’t tell this stranger that. So, instead, she took a giant gulp of the tea and finished it off, ignoring how it burnt her mouth. “I should get going.” She said, gathering her coat.

Audrey frowned and she indicated to the window. “It’s still snowing.” She pointed out. “You sure you want to go through all that?”

Melanie paused, following her gaze. She was right. The snow was only just getting going and was now accompanied by a loud, howling wind. If she couldn’t have handled it five minutes ago, she certainly couldn’t now. Audrey noticed this and she stood.

“Look, I live upstairs so you can stay with me tonight, if you want. Just so you’re not stuck around in here all night.”

Melanie frowned, watching Audrey curiously as she took Melanie’s empty cup and threw it into a bin. “What?”

Audrey took a hold of the bin liner and pulled it up. She glanced up at Melanie, an expression on her face that told Melanie she knew she’d avoided the previous question. “I said, I live upstairs. The snow’s not gonna stop anytime soon and I don’t plan on spending all night in here. So, either freeze to death or come up with me. I’ve got a pull-out bed you can stay on.”

“You just met me. You don’t even know my last name.”

Audrey tied the bin and chucked it by the front door. She looked at Melanie. “Well, we’ve clarified you’re not going to rob me, not that I think you’d be capable anyway. I’m also in the habit of not letting people act on a death wish.” She shrugged. “It’s nothing.”

Melanie glanced at the snow blizzard again. She could hear the wind whistling through the crack in the door. Her apartment was locked and there was no Alex to get back to so no real reason for her to be risking her neck on the ice.

“I suppose you’re right.” She turned. “You sure it won’t be any trouble?”

Audrey shrugged again. “Not at all. I live alone and you make good company. C’mon.” She gestured to a door behind the bar. “That’s my back way.”

Melanie followed her through the door which led to a cold, cement hallway that was lit only by a flickering lightbulb. It illuminated a small set of stairs which led to another door, this one emerald green like the interior of the coffee shop. Audrey produced a small key from her back pocket and fixed it into the lock, twisted, and opened the door. As they walked in, Melanie’s nose was greeted with the faint smell of coffee and lavender.

Looking back on it, Melanie knew she would’ve hated the smell if it weren’t for Audrey. It was a part of her in some way, and that had pulled Melanie to her. She didn’t remember everything they talked about that evening apart from the fact they’d talked all night and Audrey had walked Melanie home the next morning. At the time, Audrey had said it was so Melanie wouldn’t slip on the ice but in later years admitted it because she wanted to know where Melanie lived so she could see her again. Melanie always loved that little fact: that Audrey wanted to see her again.

She looked down to Audrey, who was curled up beside her with her mouth hanging open and a small trail of drool dribbling down her chin. Her arms and legs were spread starfish over Melanie’s body, only gently grabbing her tank top to keep her close. Melanie smiled, paying no mind to the puddle that was forming on her chest from Audrey’s mouth. Instead, she looked out into the engineer’s room. Alex was asleep in the bunk opposite them with her book tucked into her chest. When she was sleeping, the teenager looked her age. Her frowns and angry scowls were replaced with peaceful sleep. In quiet moments like this, Melanie liked to pretend that they were a normal family. A family where Alex didn’t wake up with an annoyed scowl and Audrey didn’t seem so exhausted beyond repair that she needed one of Pike’s little pick-me-ups to get her through the day. That wasn’t to say Melanie didn’t love them despite their flaws but she wished they weren’t suffering so much. Part of her blamed herself but Audrey always lectured her on it, so she tried to keep that to herself.

Audrey stirred, closing her mouth like she was chewing on something. Her eyes didn’t open as she adjusted her head to rest on the pillow instead of Melanie’s chest. Melanie slipped further into the bed, lying down so she could face Audrey properly. She placed a tiny kiss at her forehead. Audrey’s brow furrowed as it tickled her but said nothing, drifting back off again.

Melanie reached up above their heads, and turned off the light.

**Author's Note:**

> So I might make this a two chapter at some point?


End file.
